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The present invention relates to a boat cover and, more particularly, to a self-supporting boat cover including shock-corded poles that support the cover and aid in the run-off of rainwater.
Boat covers are typically employed to protect a boat from environmental elements and the like. In order to prevent rainwater and other debris from collecting on a surface of an installed boat cover, it is desirable to construct the boat cover so that its top surface is convex, allowing rainwater, debris and the like to run off the boat cover and away from the boat. Previous constructions that have been designed for this purpose are generally complicated, difficult to install and expensive to manufacture. Additionally, conventional constructions typically are separate from the cover itself and not integrated into the cover, do not stay in place very well, when they fall or move from intended position, their effectiveness diminishes, and they most often are purchased separately, thereby adding cost beyond the initial purchase. Moreover, the effective range of these products is typically quite limited, i.e., a support pole in the stern will not allow water run-off in the bow area. These products create xe2x80x9cpointsxe2x80x9d of stress on the fabric coverxe2x80x94not distributed over the entire cover. Many of the other types of supporting devices require modification of the boat, including drilling holes, adding permanently mounted hardware, etc.
The present invention, in contrast with conventional arrangements, is highly effective while being simple to install and inexpensive to manufacture. In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a self-supporting boat cover includes a cover member having a plurality of sleeves that extend substantially longitudinally from a bow end of the cover member to a stern end. A corresponding plurality of flexible poles are insertable in the sleeves through either end of the sleeves, wherein the flexible poles are releasably securable in the sleeves. The sleeves may be arranged to converge from one of the bow end and the stern end toward the other of the bow end and the stern end. Each end of the sleeves may include an open portion and a closed portion defining an entry channel and a holding area for the flexible poles, respectively. The sleeves extend along at least 70%, and preferably at least 80%, of the cover member, wherein the flexible poles are configured in a length slightly shorter than a length of the sleeves.
Each of the flexible poles may include a plurality of pole sections releasably secured to one another, the number of pole sections being dependent on a length of the cover member. In this context, each of the pole sections may include a first end containing an insert tube disposed partially in and partially out of the pole section and a second end sized to receive the insert tube of an adjacent pole section. An elastic cord is internally secured between each of adjacent pole sections, which elastic cord biases the adjacent pole sections toward engagement with each other. Each of the flexible poles includes at least five pole sections, preferably ten pole sections.
In another exemplary embodiment of the invention, a method of securing the self-supporting boat cover of the invention to a boat is provided. The method includes the steps of (a) attaching the cover member to the boat; and (b) releasably securing the flexible poles into respective ones of the sleeves. In this context, step (b) may be practiced by inserting the flexible poles through the entry channel then securing the flexible poles in the holding area. Prior to step (b), the flexible poles may be assembled by releasably securing a plurality of pole sections to one another, the number of pole sections being dependent on a length of the cover member.